Greenhouse Garden Update – May 4/2014

Greenhouse Garden Update – May 4/2014

There still is not a whole lot going on out at the Greenhouse. It is Alberta, so of course Mother Nature thinks that Spring involves 22 C temperatures one day and then a 10-20cm Snowfall warning for the next day.

However, despite the snow, the tomatoes that I planted out in the greenhouse on April 19th are doing great. They have started to put on nice, dark green foliage. They are still wrapped up in a frost blanket, and will stay that way for the foreseeable future. I would be more likely to uncover them if there were less broken windows.

The peas I sowed on April 13th have finally begun to show their faces. Which means I will be sowing the next batch in the next week or two, for succession planting.

The radishes have really taken off in the last week, and the true leaves are starting to poke through. So it shouldn’t be long before we have a harvest

The spinach, turnips and kohlrabi are also doing great! It will be nice to have such an early harvest of a few things to keep us inspired and pulling weeds!
I need to get in there and thin out a few of the seedlings, but for now, I’m just happy to see them actually growing! Especially with the snow outside.

I am still waiting on the carrots and pickling onions to show up. There are a few little carrot seedlings starting to poke through, but there is no sign of the onions just yet.

The tomatoes that are still waiting to go into the ground are tucked away in a double layer of clear plastic and frost blanket, along with my pre-started shallots, and the broad beans. Once this weather stops being so horrible, the broad beans and shallots will move outside to their final homes, and the majority if the tomatoes will be in the greenhouse… The extras are going into other peoples gardens… Or into my backyard.

The biggest job that needs to get done out there is the digging of the outside garden. While we did the brute force of the work in the fall, every piece of dandelion root and grass root that we missed is now sprouting. So while I would love to just go over it all with a rototiller, I know that will just make the problem so much worse… So hand digging is in our future… A lot of hand digging. I have done about a quarter of it so far, so only 75% more to go!

Well that is about all there is to update on at this point. Next time should be much more exciting as we really get into the planting season… I should get back to digging before the grass takes over. Have a great day, and I hope it is warm and sunny wherever you are.

Next we will probably talk about Potatoes and onions and all the things that can stand a few of these colder days. (Our seed potato variety count is at 10 right now… needless to say that some kinds really need to get into the ground soon)